Jin patted the boy's head, loving the feel of his soft hair under his fingertips. "Jiminie, why do you have to be so cute?" he asked, pinching his cheeks lightly.

The boy giggled, squirming away from Jin. "I'm not cute," he said, but even he didn't sound convinced.

"How can you note be cute when you have this little button nose," Jin began, poking his nose, "and these adorable little ears," he continued, pinching his earlobes, "and these beautiful little hands?" he finished, holding his hands.

The boy just laughed some more. "Hyung is cuter."

Jin rolled his eyes. "Lies."

"Nuh uh!"

Jin smiled. He loved Jimin, so much...

***

Yoongi opened his eyes to find unexpected warmth. "Wha-"

That was when he realized that he must have fallen asleep on Jimin while watching a movie.

"Hi, hyung," the boy whispered, grinning. "Did you have a nice nap?"

"I..." Yoongi blinked, still waking up. "Yeah, I did. I don't even remember falling asleep..."

The boy laughed. "Hyung, you used me as a pillow."

Yoongi opened his mouth to protest but couldn't find a decent argument, scratching the back of his neck before muttering, "Well, you made a good pillow."

The boy smiled back at Yoongi, and while his eyes disappeared, Yoongi took a moment to look at him, to really look at him.

Yoongi smiled. He loved Jimin, so much...

***

"HYUNG! STOP!" the boy yelled, rolling around on the floor. "HYUNG!"

Hobi laughed evilly. "The tickle monster stops for no man," he announced before tickling the boy's stomach once more, leading to high-pitched shrieks and laughter.

"HYUNG!" the boy whined, trying to escape Hobi's clutches to no avail.

Hobi finally relented, giving up on tickling him and instead pulling him close so Hobi's chest rested against the boy's back. "Who's your favorite hyung?" he asked, repeating his question from earlier.

"Hyuuuuung," the boy said. "I can't pick favorites! Jin-hyung and Yoongi-hyung will get mad at me!"

"Is that so?" Hobi asked before he resumed his tickling, and as the boy in his arms spasmed, his laughter loud and bold, Hobi looked down at him.

Hobi smiled. He loved Jimin, so much...

***

Tae waited behind the door until the boy had started coming through before he jumped out, earning himself a scream from a pale-faced boy.

"TAEHYUNG!" the boy yelled, clutching at his chest. "WHY DID YOU DO THAT TO ME?! I WAS SO SCARED!" His eyes welled up with tears before Tae pulled him in for a bro hug, ruffling his hair.

"I know," Tae replied happily. "It was great. You should have seen it."

The boy shook his head. "Nuh uh! You need to stop doing stuff like that to me, Tae! It's not fun!"

"It is for me," Tae said, blinking innocently. "Besides, if anyone else tries to scare you, I'll protect you, okay?"

The boy ducked his head into Tae's chest. "You have to promise..."

"I promise," Tae said, looking down at the boy.

Tae smiled. He loved Jimin, so much...

***

Jungkook sat beside the boy, the two of them staring down at a sheet of paper.

"It should be easy," Jungkook said, and the boy nodded uncertainly. "My teacher said so. And it's short response so we just have to fill in the answer."

The boy nodded again and waited for Jungkook to read aloud the first question.

"What is the word in English for the object someone uses to shelter them from rain?"

Jungkook stared at the paper.

The boy stared at the paper.

Jungkook sighed, sagging down in his seat. "Well, frick."

The other boy giggled, stealing the pencil out of Jungkook's hand. "How about shoes?"

Jungkook looked at the other in confusion. "What?"

"Well, they don't not shelter you from rain. They just protect your feet," the boy said, grinning cheekily, and Jungkook couldn't help but laugh.

"Remind me never to copy off of you," Jungkook said and the other scoffed, offended.

While the other erased the answer he had written, Jungkook looked over at him.

Jungkook smiled. He loved Jimin, so much...

***

...only...

***

Namjoon laughed, staring affectionately at the wall decorated with tick marks. "Remember when Jimin was the tallest triplet?"

Everybody laughed, even the boy.

But it was a lie.

The boy didn't remember.

He didn't remember because he hadn't been there.

He didn't remember because-

***

...the boy they had taken home with them wasn't Jimin.

***

"How's Jimin doing?" Lisa asked, smiling as Namjoon recounted their recent adventures. "I'm glad to hear that. Give the kids my best. Bye, Namjoon."

Lisa hung up and set her phone down on the bedside table.

"Mommy?"

"Yes, honey? You can come on in."

The door opened slowly, squeaking on its hinges, revealing a small boy with pale skin, dark hair, and vulnerable eyes. "I had a nightmare," he whispered, and Lisa smiled gently at him, patting the bed.

"You can sleep with Mommy tonight, all right? I'll make the monsters go away."

A transient smile flitted across the boy's face as he hurried over to the bed, pulling himself up and crawling towards Lisa, settling down against her side.

Lisa leaned over, brushing his hair out of his face with loving hands as she placed a soft kiss on his forehead. "Sweet dreams, Jimin."